


Gremlins

by fragilecapricornpanic



Series: PRE-WRITTEN, Pre-Canon Sibling Encounters [50]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Abusive Reginald Hargreeves, Angst, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Feels, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Good Sibling Vanya Hargreeves, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, Kid Fic, Klaus Hargreeves Deserves Better, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves Needs Help, Klaus Hargreeves Whump, One Shot, One Shot Collection, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pre-Canon, Sad Vanya Hargreeves, Vanya Hargreeves Deserves Better, Vanya Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Vanya Hargreeves-centric, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:41:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26262073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fragilecapricornpanic/pseuds/fragilecapricornpanic
Summary: On Vanya’s first Halloween since leaving the academy, she has resigned herself to staying home alone and hiding from trick or treaters. As she settles down to nostalgically watch a movie they all snuck out to see as kids, a distressed Klaus turns up at her door. Her violin is the only thing that will help him, like it used to when they were small.
Relationships: Klaus Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves
Series: PRE-WRITTEN, Pre-Canon Sibling Encounters [50]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1869709
Comments: 2
Kudos: 130





	Gremlins

**Author's Note:**

> Headcanon: Halloween is fucking terrifying and triggering for Klaus because duh
> 
> One of the earliest chronologically I’ve posted so far from this series.

Holidays were still something Vanya was trying to get used to. They’d never had any at the academy, and they all seemed rather nonsensical and confusing. She wasn’t sure how to celebrate them, or even why she should to begin with. Sometimes she believed people were tricking her, making up these events to test how much she’d believe. Vanya hadn’t truly realised how sheltered they’d been from the normal world until she moved out. In the academy there were no tooth fairies or Easter bunnies, no man who broke in through your chimney. Halloween was an especially odd holiday, she felt. Why celebrate the dead by dressing up as them? Wasn’t that a bit offensive? It seemed that some of the costumes weren’t even trying to be dead people - Vanya had seen a store selling Umbrella Academy uniforms and domino masks! It was safe to say she shuffled from that aisle as soon as possible.

Parties weren’t Vanya’s scene, they were much too loud. The music would pulse through her like a machine gun. Classical music was about the only thing she could tolerate. Not that anyone had invited her to any Halloween parties anyway, she’d actually have to be remotely likeable for that to happen. She had no friends at college, just people she was forced to study with. It kind of stung to know no one would invite her to anything, even though she would loathe to attend. Even just living in dorms had been distressing. In her first semester, she’d regretfully had to contact dad and ask for an increased allowance so she could get her own apartment. Surprisingly, he’d said yes once he’d discovered the sound and stress was getting to her despite her medication.

At least now she lived alone she didn’t have to feel embarrassed about sitting in silence during a holiday. She was already highly strung due to their birthday and the anniversary of Ben’s death. Vanya couldn’t bare to be bombarded by people in garish costumes. Thankfully her apartment building didn’t really have children, no one had knocked on her door yet. She had the lights on dim just incase, she didn’t have any candy to give them. It was daunting to imagine conversing with perfect strangers again and again all evening. Conversing with people she knew was horrific enough. She always said the wrong thing and sounded like such an idiot. Vanya often just hoped people would forget she was there; that had been inherent when she was at the academy, especially after Five and Ben were no longer around. She simply blended in to the furniture. It would be best if no one thought she was home this evening... to keep socialisation to a minimum.

Even the television was packed with Halloween content. Vanya had had no idea there were quite so many horror movies. There were dozens of different genres of fear, apparently. Vanya would rather not frighten herself, she didn’t see the appeal. Instead she chose to put in her _Gremlins_ VHS. She supposed it was technically a horror. They’d once snuck out to see a throwback screening, before Five vanished and Ben died. It would be nice to remember that night, before their world was shattered to pieces. She wished she could’ve had the power to bottle memories up - to jump back into them whenever she wished. This movie would have to suffice, she supposed. Vanya startled when banging came from her front door, she didn’t quite know what to do. _Gremlins_ had already started playing, the children would likely hear it through the door. She hoped they wouldn’t throw rotten eggs, someone at college had told her people did that. It made her gulp with anxiety, unsure whether her peer was simply messing with her. Chewing on her lip, Vanya internally begged for the kids to give up.

“I can hear _Gremlins_!” her brother shouted through the door as he continued to bang. He sounded outraged with her choice of movie, for whatever reason. Vanya recalled he had giggled the whole way through when they saw it at the theatre. They almost got kicked out. “Please, Vanny!” Klaus whined through the door. Vanya assumed he would grow impatient and simply kick it down if she neglected to answer. She winced in anticipation and pulled herself up from her couch. Why on earth would he want to see Number Seven? Surely he had better things to do than visit the disappointment of the family. Halloween was probably one of the nights he could attention seek the most, given his power. Vanya frowned with guilt for thinking such a thing, even if Klaus _was_ a drama queen.

On nervously opening her door a crack, Vanya was met with Klaus’ face of sheer and utter panic. He looked like he may have been crying, though she wasn’t sure if maybe he’d just been smoking weed. It was probably weed, she thought. “Is everything okay?” Vanya gently murmured, hiding half behind the door and half behind her bangs. Maybe he was paranoid, sometimes at the academy he would freak out and say things were out to get him when nothing was there. Vanya had read that some drugs could do that. It can’t have been his power, he hadn’t been able to use that since they were kids. A small part of Vanya always resented Klaus for purposefully turning off his power... she had wished every night to wake up with one.

Klaus gulped nervously, shifting his weight from foot to foot rapidly - almost looking like a child who really needed to pee. “Can I please come in?” he pleaded, checking over his shoulders anxiously. Vanya bit down on her lip, she didn’t want to leave him all alone like this, but she didn’t really want him in her apartment either. Vanya knew she couldn’t say no, she would probably consider jumping from a bridge if one of her siblings told her to. She was insignificant, and they were anything but. “Sure.” she whispered, slowly pulling the door open fully. Her brother hastily shuffled in and looked around the apartment uneasily. He was violently chewing on his nails, and practically on the verge of hyperventilating. 

“Did you take something?” she murmured as she closed the door, clasping her hands together anxiously. Vanya instinctually tilted her head down so she could hide behind her bangs. Her brother flicked his sights to her, looking rather confused and deeply troubled.

“No?” he mumbled gently, in between fast and shallow breaths. Klaus paused for a moment, slightly shaking his head to himself. “Well, _yes_.” he admitted reluctantly. “But that’s not what...” he gazed over to the corner of her room, spotting her music stand. “That’s not why I’m...” Klaus wandered off to the stand, seeming almost in a trance. He placed a gentle hand on the sheet music she had been practicing earlier that day. “Can you play for me, please?” he begged, turning to look at her with desperation in his eyes. His hair was even messier than usual, like he’d been running his hands through it. Vanya didn’t quite know how to respond. When they were small, Klaus used to plead for her to play for him. He said the music made it _”less loud”_ , Vanya could never understand what that meant. If anything, her violin made the mansion much louder. But it helped him calm down, so she obliged. She would’ve obliged anyway, she was Number Seven and he was Number Four. It had been quite a while since he’d asked her to play, he’d found other ways to distract himself.

“Okay...” she tentatively murmured, ambling over to her violin case beside her brother. He sent her a grateful smile, though he still looked rather tormented. “Any piece in particular?” Vanya inquired softly, placing her violin against her shoulder. Klaus shook his head hastily in response. “ _Anything._ ” he whispered, chewing on his nails once again. They were bloodied, she noticed. Vanya nodded and forced a polite smirk, she hoped it wasn’t too obvious how uncomfortable she felt. It was always daunting for her to perform around her siblings. They had literal superpowers, and all she had was an undoubtedly average talent. Klaus stumbled even further towards the corner of the room and slumped down against the wall, sitting mere feet from the violin. He used to say the louder the music the quieter things felt. Klaus shuffled as far into the corner of the walls as he could get, tightly tucking his knees under his chin.

—

Once her brother had eventually dropped off to sleep, Vanya slowly stopped her playing. She hoped her neighbors wouldn’t be too mad about it, sound travelled quite well throughout the building. Hopefully people would be at parties this evening. Vanya ever so gently placed her violin back in its case, trying not to wake her brother. She sauntered over to her couch, propping herself on the end of the cushion. She didn’t know what to do, she wasn’t sure she felt comfortable with him staying overnight. Vanya had hardly seen him since they’d moved out. She could tell he looked worse than he had, more than likely more reliant on the drugs. Vanya didn’t really have much to steal, but she knew he would probably find something if he really wished.

She lightly grabbed her violin case and shuffled towards her bedroom, trying to keep her steps soft - as though she were afraid of waking a bear. Vanya placed her violin under her bed, hoping that would make it less likely to be stolen. As she quietly sauntered back into her lounge to hide her medication, she accidentally dropped one of her textbooks from the kitchen counter. Klaus startled awake, much too dramatically for the impact the book made on the floor. “Please don’t make me go out there.” he blurted, sounding like he was talking about a war zone. 

Subtly tucking her pill bottle into her pocket, Vanya nodded timidly. “Do you want to stay on the couch?” she offered, taking in how uncomfortable his position on the wooden floor appeared. He shook his head, seeming petrified. Vanya wondered what possible drug he’d taken.

”The corner.” he announced, as though that offered any explanation. Why would he want to stay stuffed into the corner of the room? Vanya shuffled into her bedroom to grab a spare sheet from her dresser. It was tempting to just give him her comforter, it felt like Four had more right to it than Seven. She stopped herself though, remembering what her new therapist had recently told her. _You are number one in your life_. Coming back into her lounge, she held the sheet out towards her brother. Vanya was rather nervous to get too near to him, he seemed on the verge of snapping. Klaus took it from her grasp and sent a clearly forced smile, it didn’t spread to his terrified eyes. Vanya sighed wearily and made her way out of the room. As she reached for her light switch Klaus suddenly yelped out. Vanya near jumped from her skin. “Please leave it on!” he blurted, looking on the verge of tears.

After being out of the academy, Vanya had forgotten her brother’s fear of the dark. She thought he may have grown out of it by now. “Okay,” she mumbled pacifistically “goodnight.” Klaus minutely nodded his head, wrapping the sheet around himself like a cocoon. “Night.” he whispered as Vanya entered her bedroom. Closing the door behind her, Vanya grabbed her pill bottle from her pocket and swallowed one dry. She didn’t think either of them would get much sleep tonight, for vastly different reasons.

**Author's Note:**

> I love Vanya and Klaus together I was so happy we got them having fun together in season 2. I have some fluff of them at Allison’s wedding that I’ll post soon.


End file.
